Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Bloghttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/
News and views about philosophy, the academic profession, academic freedom, intellectual culture, and other topics.
The world's most popular philosophy blog for more than a dozen years.en-US2017-08-17T09:47:28-05:00

A striking paragraph in today's NYT report about the fiasco of Trump's apologetics for Nazis and racistshttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/a-striking-paragraph-in-todays-nyt-report-about-the-fiasco-of-trumps-apologetics-for-nazis-and-racis.html
This paragraph lept out at me: The president’s top advisers described themselves as stunned, despondent and numb. Several said they were unable to see how Mr. Trump’s presidency would recover, and others expressed doubts about his capacity to do the...Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsOf Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-08-17T09:47:28-05:00DeNiro on Trump (from last October)http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/deniro-on-trump-from-last-october.html
It's clearer and clearer how right he was:Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsBrian Leiter2017-08-17T08:44:00-05:00Philosopher's Annual: Best Papers from 2016http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/philosophers-annual-best-papers-from-2016.html
Professor Grim forwarded the announcement this morning to all the Nominating Editors (I've added institutional affiliation of the author for 2017-18 in parentheses); I'm pleased to see several excellent historical papers among the winners this year: The final selection-- The...Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-17T08:15:19-05:00On Antifa, the anti-fascist movementhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/on-antifa-the-anti-fascist-movement.html
This is informative. (Thanks to Daniel Buk for the pointer.)Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsOf Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-08-17T07:56:00-05:00On the history of America, the "White Settler" nationhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/on-the-history-of-america-the-white-settler-nation.html
Robert Paul Wolff comments with his usual clear eye for the facts that are morally relevant. (And see also.)Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsOf Cultural InterestPhilosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-17T07:17:00-05:00Ways of doing metaphysicshttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/ways-of-doing-metaphysics.html
A useful short typology courtesy of philosopher Amanda Bryant (Trent).Philosophy in the NewsWhat is Philosophy?Brian Leiter2017-08-17T06:25:00-05:003rd Annual Meeting of the International Society for Nietzsche Studies at Birkbeck College, University of London, March 16-17, 2018: Call for Papershttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/3rd-annual-meeting-of-the-international-society-for-nietzsche-studies-at-birkbeck-college-university.html
Just a reminder about the call for papers for the third annual meeting of the International Society for Nietzsche Studies which will take place in London next March. Once again, we will be able to cover the airfare and lodging...Nietzsche etc.Brian Leiter2017-08-14T13:11:00-05:00The forgotten history of Korea, north and southhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/the-forgotten-history-of-korea-north-and-south.html
A useful capsule summary of work by the noted historian Bruce Cumings, whose books I also commend to anyone interested in understanding how North and South emerged from the ashes of World War II. (Thanks to Jerry Dworkin for the...Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsOf Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-08-14T08:44:00-05:00Cal Tech's Christopher Hitchcock interviewed...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/cal-techs-christopher-hitchcock-interviewed.html
...at 3AM.Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-14T07:05:56-05:00NY Times makes its contribution to "normalizing" the NeoNazis...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/ny-times-makes-its-contribution-to-normalizing-the-neonazis.html
...by putting a "balanced" article on its front page about whether they're being "normalized.""The less they know, the less they know it"Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsBrian Leiter2017-08-14T06:53:10-05:00The APA's draft "good practices guide"http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/the-apas-draft-good-practices-guide.html
I haven't had the time or motivation to engage with this, though several people have written me about the indefensible section on the pseudo-science of "implicit bias", and now there is some cogent pushback at the APA blog discussion of...Academic FreedomIssues in the ProfessionPhilosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-14T06:35:00-05:00The "hard problem" of consciousness is not THAT hardhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/the-hard-problem-of-consciousness-is-not-that-hard.html
Philosopher John Heil (Wash U/St Louis) comments. (This is a very nice short essay, that clearly explains the official "hard problem" and clearly states its objections.)Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-14T06:23:00-05:00A clinical psychologist comments on the appeal of Ayn Randhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/a-clinical-psychologist-comments-on-the-appeal-of-ayn-rand.html
Amusing, but not deep (there may not be anything deep to say, admittedly, about the mediocre narcissists who are Rand's usual prey). (Thanks to Michael Swanson for the pointer.)"The less they know, the less they know it"Of Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-08-14T06:10:00-05:00Mediocre White People Watch: Peter Cvjetanovic editionhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/mediocre-white-people-watch-peter-cvjetanovic-edition.html
Josh Marshall has the amusingly pathetic details. Meanwhile, his University of Nevada, Reno classmates really go to town on their now notorious colleague."The less they know, the less they know it"Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsBrian Leiter2017-08-14T05:48:00-05:00Trump is an accidental Nazi...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/trump-is-an-accidentalal-nazi.html
...as this rather sober report from Politico makes clear. His narcissism and mafia mentality overwhelms everything else. He doesn't hate Jews, he knows how to do business with them and his son-in-law is one, so they're safe. Blacks, well they..."The less they know, the less they know it"Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsOf Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-08-12T19:26:41-05:00Great rock 'n' roll instrumentals (#1): Allman Brothers Band, "Jessica," 1973http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/great-rock-n-roll-instrumentals-1-allman-brothers-band-jessica-1973.html
Concluding our series of great rock 'n' roll instrumentals, I'm not sure this is really the best of them all, but it's one of the best of the genre. Next week we resume the regular "obscure" items!Great moments in obscure rock 'n' rollBrian Leiter2017-08-12T17:58:00-05:00In Memoriam: A.D. (David) Smith (1953-2017)http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/in-memoriam-ad-david-smith-1953-2017.html
Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Warwick, Professor Smith was especially well-known for his work on Husserl and on the philosophy of perception, and also worked in philosophy of religion. I will add links to memorial notices when...Philosophy in the NewsPhilosophy UpdatesBrian Leiter2017-08-11T08:38:05-05:00Mediocre white people to rally in Charlottesville...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/mediocre-white-people-to-rally-in-charlottesville.html
...in effort to convince themselves that their mediocrity and misery is the fault of "those" people."The less they know, the less they know it"Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsBrian Leiter2017-08-10T17:26:34-05:00Marygrove College (Detroit) closing all its undergraduate programs...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/marygrove-college-detroit-closing-all-its-undergraduate-programs.html
...which will presumably affect the three faculty in philosophy, though at this point I don't have further details. Feel free to add links or information in the comments. (Thanks to Robert McGarvey for the pointer.)Issues in the ProfessionPhilosophy in the NewsThe AcademyBrian Leiter2017-08-10T13:16:02-05:00Dunning-Kruger Effect Watch: Nassim Taleb editionhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/dunning-kruger-effect-watch-nassim-teleb-edition.html
Philosopher Massimo Pigliucci (CUNY) comments. (One need not agree with Pigliucci's own polemic against "scientism" to see that Taleb is a blowhard.)"The less they know, the less they know it"Of Cultural InterestPhilosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-10T09:20:30-05:00"German philosophy goes viral"http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/german-philosophy-goes-viral.html
Many readers have sent along this article; unfortunately, most of those mentioned are, as Markus Gabriel (Bonn) aptly says about one, "philosophical performer[s]," which is probably too generous a description of the absurd Sloterdijk. Indeed, Gabriel and Habermas are about...Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-10T09:12:21-05:00Wilson from Alberta to La Trobehttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/wilson-from-alberta-to-la-trobe.html
Robert A. Wilson (philosophy of mind, cognitive science, and biology), Professor of Philosophy at the University of Alberta, has accepted appointment as Professor of Philosophy at La Trobe University in Australia. That's a significant loss for Alberta, and gain for...Philosophy UpdatesBrian Leiter2017-08-10T07:07:00-05:00Capitalism is the problemhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/capitalism-is-the-problem.html
A younger generation is noticing. The quote from Nancy Pelosi, spokesperson for the more-or-less prudent wing of the ruling class, is priceless.Hermeneutics of SuspicionOf Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-08-10T06:48:00-05:00Klein from Macquarie to ANUhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/klein-from-macquarie-to-anu.html
Colin Klein (philosophy of mind, psychology, & science), currently Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Macquarie University, has accepted appointment as Associate Professor of Philosophy at the Australian National University.Philosophy UpdatesBrian Leiter2017-08-08T09:48:24-05:00The administrative nightmare of U.K. academic life?http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/the-administrative-nightmare-of-uk-academic-life.html
MOVING TO FRONT FROM AUGUST 3--INTERESTING DISCUSSION, MORE COMMENTS WELCOME. Is this accurate or overblown?Issues in the ProfessionThe AcademyBrian Leiter2017-08-07T18:48:00-05:00On feasibilityhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/on-feasibility.html
Philosopher Nick Southwood (ANU) discusses.Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-07T12:15:25-05:00Southampton's Fiona Woollard interviewed...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/southamptons-fiona-woollard-interviewed.html
...at 3AM.Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-07T09:01:00-05:00Martin from UCL to Oxfordhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/martin-from-ucl-to-oxford.html
Mike Martin (philosophy of mind), Professor of Philosophy at University College London, will become Wilde Professor of Mental Philosophy at Oxford University in 2018, succeeding Martin Davies, who faced mandatory retirement. Martin will continue to teach fall semesters at Berkeley,...Philosophy UpdatesBrian Leiter2017-08-07T06:16:00-05:00On the problem of other mindshttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/on-the-problem-of-other-minds.html
Philosopher Anita Avramides (Oxford) comments.Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-07T06:16:00-05:00Phillips from Oxford to Birminghamhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/phillips-from-oxford-to-birmingham.html
Ian Phillips (philosophy of mind & psychology), Associate Professor of Philosophy at Oxford University, has accepted appointment as Professor of Philosophy of Psychology at the University of Birmingham, where his spouse, Hanna Pickard has also been promoted to Professor of...Philosophy UpdatesBrian Leiter2017-08-07T05:32:00-05:00Great rock 'n' roll instrumentals (#2): The Nice, "America," 1968http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/great-rock-n-roll-instrumentals-2-the-nice-america-1968.html
Keith Emerson's first band, doing their riff on themes from Leonard Bernstein's and Stephen Sondheim's "West Side Story":Great moments in obscure rock 'n' rollBrian Leiter2017-08-05T17:28:00-05:00In Memoriam: Delia Graff Fara (1969-2017)http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/in-memoriam-delia-graff-fara-1970-2017.html
MOVING TO FRONT FROM JULY 20--UPDATED I am very sorry to report the untimely passing of Professor Fara, Professor of Philosophy at Princeton University, and a leading contributor to the philosophy of language and philosophical logic. On a personal note,...Philosophy in the NewsPhilosophy UpdatesBrian Leiter2017-08-04T12:32:00-05:00Unsurprisingly, Trump is as dumb in private as in publichttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/unsurprisingly-trump-is-as-dumb-in-private-as-in-public.html
The latest evidence. (Thanks to Joshua Blanchard for flagging the omission.)"The less they know, the less they know it"Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsBrian Leiter2017-08-03T16:36:19-05:0014th anniversary posthttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/14-years.html
I first posted on this blog on this day 14 years ago. My reflections on the 10th anniversary of the blog remain apt. Following a suggestion of a reader earlier in the summer, when my reduced summer blogging began, I...Navel-GazingPhilosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-03T15:28:32-05:00Religious toleration and identity politicshttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/religious-toleration-and-identity-politics.html
Philosopher Paul Russell (British Columbia/Gothenburg) comments, arguing, rightly I think, that religion is more like politics than race.Of Cultural InterestPhilosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-03T08:41:17-05:00Trumpian incompetence and the Department of Energyhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/trumpian-incompetence-and-the-department-of-energy.html
Not a laughing matter. (Thanks to Jerry Dworkin for the pointer.)Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsOf Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-08-03T06:26:00-05:00Erratum watch: David Lewis editionhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/erratum-watch-david-lewis-edition.html
This is funny. (Thanks to Mike Doughtery for the pointer.)Personal Ads of the Philosophers (and other humor)Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-03T05:18:00-05:00Tuvel more dangerous than a Klansman?http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/tuvel-more-dangerous-than-a-klansman.html
MOVING TO FRONT FROM YESTERDAY--UPDATED An untenured female philosopher writes: Thanks very much for posting the link to the latest What is it like to be a philosopher interview. I am curious as to what you think about Tina Fernandes..."The less they know, the less they know it"Issues in the ProfessionPhilosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-08-01T11:48:00-05:00A rock 'n' roll instrumental bonus: "Boogie Funk" with Freddie Kinghttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/08/a-rock-n-roll-instrumental-bonus-boogie-with-freddie-king.html
Philosopher Brian O'Connor (University College Dublin), noting that "Hideaway" was, of course, a King tune, also called this great video (some time from the early 1970s I would guess) to my attention. Wow! UPDATE: Someone on twitter called to my...Great moments in obscure rock 'n' rollBrian Leiter2017-08-01T05:50:00-05:00New Books in Julyhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/new-books-in-july.html
Authors and/or publishers kindly sent me these new books this month: America in Italy: The United States in the Political Thought and Imagination of the Risorgimento, 1763-1865 by Axel Korner (Princeton University Press, 2017). Pragmatism and Justice edited by Susan...Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-07-31T16:59:00-05:00"Teaching Philosophy Outside the University" by Preston Stovallhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/teaching-philosophy-outside-the-university-by-preston-stovall.html
Preston Stovall is a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Hradec Králové in the Czech Republic, an adjunct instructor at the University of Nevada and La Roche College, and an education researcher with Studium Consulting. He kindly shared with me...Issues in the ProfessionPhilosophy in the NewsWhat is Philosophy?Brian Leiter2017-07-31T10:14:00-05:00"Chicago Carnage" from the Rebel Pundithttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/chicago-carnage-from-the-rebel-pundit.html
This is bracing, and makes a couple of good points: UPDATE: Philosopher John Casey (Northeastern Illinois) points out to me that "Rebel Pundit" is a front organization for a Breitbart wacko named Jeremy Segal, whose purpose is obviously to suppress...Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsHermeneutics of SuspicionOf Cultural InterestBrian Leiter2017-07-31T08:51:00-05:00The fractured executivehttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/the-fractured-executive.html
Amusingly apt comments from legal scholar Jack Goldsmith (Harvard): The fractured executive branch is partly a result of terrible executive organization but mainly the product of an incompetent, mendacious president interacting with appointed or inherited executive branch officials who possess..."The less they know, the less they know it"Authoritarianism and Fascism AlertsBrian Leiter2017-07-31T07:46:00-05:00More than scholarly "carelessness"?http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/more-than-scholarly-carelessness.html
A propos last Thursday's post, a PhD student in another discipline writes: [Y]ou have rightly indicated that a cursory reading of the "unpublished manuscript" should make clear that its author is not Soble. But independent of this -- I am...Issues in the ProfessionPhilosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-07-31T06:04:00-05:00Evergreen State Professor to sue college...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/evergreen-state-professor-to-sue-college.html
...over his treatment. I don't know enough about Washington law to know what his prospects are.Academic FreedomThe AcademyBrian Leiter2017-07-31T05:46:00-05:00"Knowledge and Affect: Perspectivism Revisited"http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/knowledge-and-affect-perspectivism-revisited.html
I haven't written a serious paper on the (vexed) topic of Nietzsche's "perspectivism" since 1994, and this new paper has been reworked repeatedly over the last year under dialectical fire from Chris Janaway and especially Ken Gemes, and, originally, from...Nietzsche etc.Brian Leiter2017-07-30T18:53:19-05:00Oxford's Volker Halbach interviewed...http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/oxfords-volker-halbach-interviewed.html
...at 3AM.Philosophy in the NewsBrian Leiter2017-07-30T17:06:00-05:00Great rock 'n' roll instrumentals (#3 & #4): John Mayall's Bluesbreakers (with Eric Clapton), "Steppin' Out" (1966) and "Hideaway" (1966)http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/great-rock-n-roll-instrumentals-3-4-john-mayalls-bluesbreakers-with-eric-clapton-.html
Continuing our series of great rock 'n' roll instrumentals, now that we're into the "electric" ones, the fourth and third spots go to John Mayall's Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton on lead guitar. First, "Steppin' Out," and, of course, "Hideaway":Great moments in obscure rock 'n' rollBrian Leiter2017-07-29T18:25:00-05:00Brennan from Western Ontario to Guelphhttp://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/brennan-from-western-ontario-to-guelph.html
Samantha Brennan (moral & political philosophy, feminist philosophy), Professor of Philosophy and Women's Studies at the University of Western Ontario, will become Dean of the College of Arts and Professor of Philosophy at the University of Guelph, effective January 2018.Philosophy UpdatesBrian Leiter2017-07-28T14:48:23-05:00"Nietzsche and Aestheticism," 1992http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/nietzsche-and-aestheticism-1992.html
UPDATE: LINK NOW FIXED This was my first peer-reviewed publication (back in 1992, in Journal of the History of Philosophy), which I thought I'd make more easily available. Here's the abstract: Alexander Nehamas’s 1985 book Nietzsche: Life as a Literature...Nietzsche etc.Brian Leiter2017-07-28T09:56:36-05:00